Solo – The Single Person’s Guide to a Remarkable Life

Peter McGraw speaks to Dr. Erin Westgate about her research on living a psychologically rich life. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

Peter McGraw welcomes Laura Grant and Amy Gahran into the Solo Studio for the first ever Solo book club. They discuss Elizabeth Brake's book: Minimizing Marriage: Marriage, Morality, and the Law . Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

Paul Farahvar , the host of the Singles Only podcast, and Julie Nirvelli , a frequent co-host of Solo, join Peter McGraw in the Solo Studio to talk about what they have learned hosting podcasts for proud singles. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

Peter McGraw welcomes back Monique Murad (Freedom in Community) to play "Truth or Truth." It's a fun, thoughtful exchange--featuring conversation about how the Solo movement is bigger than Peter, Monique's "celebratory divorce," and a surprise question that makes Peter cry. Enjoy! Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

In Solo Episode 150: Looking Forward, Backward, and Inward, Peter McGraw talks about how he is experimenting with abstinence or sexual fasting—with an ambitious goal of “controlling the uncontrollable” in order to focus his attention and energy on other endeavors besides sex and dating. In this episode, Peter welcomes Nick Mennell , who lives a remarkable life in a chronic state of abstinence, to...

Kym Terribile and Peter McGraw discuss Peter's contract with Diversion Books to publish Solo in January 2024. They discuss the sales process, the ambitious writing deadline, and some plans for marketing Solo. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

Peter McGraw invites Paul Shirley , a writer, entrepreneur, and retired professional basketball player, into the Solo Studio to discuss Paul's remarkable life as a basketball player through the lens of his books. " Can I Keep My Jersey ?" has blended into Paul's time in the minor leagues and overseas. Paul learns that if things go poorly, you don't have to take it as an existential threat because...

Peter McGraw invites two friends into the Solo Studio to discuss what appears to be an emerging shift: once heterosexual women embracing their bisexuality. His guests, Rachel and Taylor, discuss their experience becoming bisexual in their thirties, and Peter presents data identifying a shift in the number of people identifying as lesbian, gay, and bisexual. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, re...

Compared to research on married people, there is little being done to investigate the well-being of single people. Fortunately, Geoff MacDonald , a social psychologist at the University of Toronto has turned his attention to examining singlehood. Peter McGraw is joined by guest co-host Iris Schneider to discuss Geoff’s recent academic paper that investigates predictors of life satisfaction fo...

In the last episode , Jill Cohen, Stephanie McHugh , and Peter McGraw talked about how many solos are not interested in dating – for now or forever. They discussed the other remarkable things that can be done instead of dating and how to navigate a world that expects you to be dating. There was to be bonus material in that episode, where they spoke about how to turn down a date. They talked so muc...

You may remember a previous episode, “How to go on a date.” This is a long overdue follow-up for non-daters: how to not go on a date. Many solos are not interested in dating – for now or forever. Peter McGraw wants to make the case for all the other amazing things you can do instead of dating and how to find your way through a world that thinks you are dating. In this episode, he speaks to Jill Co...

The Solo movement is growing. Lucy Meggeson has a wonderful new podcast for single childless women: Spinsterhood Reimagined. Peter McGraw was the first guest bloke to appear, and she kindly shared the audio with him, and he shares it here with you. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

In the third installment in a series on the invention of marriage and cooperation, Peter McGraw speaks to Hillary Anger Elfenbein about something that makes cooperation more or less effective: emotional intelligence. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

How can something so complex and far-reaching as marriage could be invented and so widely adopted? To begin to answer that question, Peter McGraw speaks to Bill Von Hippel, the author of The Social Leap: The New Evolutionary Science of Who We Are, Where We Come From, and What Makes Us Happy. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

To understand single living, you need to understand non-single-living – especially the 800-pound gorilla of relationships: marriage. In this episode, Peter McGraw speaks to Eli Finkel about contemporary marriages, which are focused on self-growth and self-expressiveness. Eli shares insights from his book  The All-Or-Nothing Marriage: How the Best Marriages Work . Love the show?  Sub...

Peter McGraw talks about how remarkable singles have a team -- an interconnected group of friends, family, acquaintances, and professionals. But this takes work. He invites a member of the Solo community, Monique Murad , to discuss the value of community and how to cultivate it. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

As the year ends, remarkable singles around the world are considering how to make their lives even more remarkable. To help with that endeavor, Peter McGraw speaks to Richard Meadows, a finance writer and the author of Optionality: How to Survive and Thrive in a Volatile World. They have a far-ranging conversation about Optionality (“the right but not obligation to take action") – something that s...

Peter McGraw hosts a “Truth or Truth” conversation with Suzette Smith , where they ask each other questions about being single and living a remarkable life as a Solo. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

One hundred and fifty episodes and nearly three years into the Solo podcast, Peter McGraw invites Kym Terribile and Julie Nirvelli back into the Solo Studio to talk about the podcast's progress. They discuss Peter's successes and weaknesses, as they look backward, forward, and inward regarding the podcast and the solo movement more generally.  Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and...

People are homebodies for a variety of reasons: they are introverted, they have a disability, their hobbies are well-suited for home, or they simply like being indoorsy. As part of his third installment in a series on homebodies, Peter McGraw speaks to Meik Wiking about creating cozy moments—at home or elsewhere—through the Danish concept of Hygge. Meik is the CEO of the Happiness Research Institu...

In his second installment of a series on homebodies, Peter McGraw talks to Gretchen Rubin - the magpie of happiness - about creating a better home base. They discuss her book Happier at Home , and she dishes out some helpful, non-intuitive ideas about creating a more welcoming home for yourself and others.  Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/s...

In this episode, Peter McGraw speaks to Donald Lichtenstein who is thriving personally and professionally. Peter likes to say that singles can sleep in when they want to, but Donnie does the opposite. He gets up absurdly early—because that is what is best for him. It’s a thoughtful conversation in which they discuss how Donnie likes routine, loves dogs and dislikes travel. As a proud homebody...

Peter McGraw welcomes Kris Marsh, a Professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland, to discuss being single during the holidays – specifically Thanksgiving and Christmas. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.org/solo/

The world often treats single living as liminal and less than, but not the hit television show Sex and the City. In this episode of Solo, Peter McGraw invites Mary Dahm into the Solo Studio to discuss the cultural implications of this critically-acclaimed show. They discuss Sex and the City’s importance in creating an alternative narrative about single living and female sexual positivity. Bonus ma...

Peter McGraw recently attended the Mind Under Matter Festival, where he did a live taping about Intellectual Arrogance, Humility, and Timidity with  Dr. Jeff Larsen . Dr. Larsen is a Social Professor of Psychology at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. He is an expert on emotions, attitudes, and well-being. Love the show?  Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://www.petermcgraw.or...